John Gladstone (1764 - 1851) - Genealogy John Gladstone Leith, Midlothian, City of Edinburgh, Scotland Death: Scottish merchant, Member of Parliament Managed by: Dec 11 1764 - Leith, Midlothian, Scotland Death: Dec 5 1851 - Fasque, Kincardineshire, Scotland Father: Anne Mackenzie Gladstone (born Robertson) Son: Dec 11 1764 - Totcombes, Leith, Midlothian, Scotland Death: Dec 5 1851 - Fasque, Kincardineshire, Scotland Father: Dec 11 1764 - Leith, Midlothian, Scotland Death: Dec 7 1851 - Fasque House, Kincardineshire, Scotland Wife: Anne Mackenzie Gladstone (born Robertson) Children: ...e, Robertson Gladstone, John Neilson Gladstone, Rt Hon. William Ewart Gladstone Pm. Frs.

Fss., Helan Jane Gladstone, Robert Barnet Gladstone Dec 11 1764 - Leith, Midlothian, Scotland Death: Dec 5 1851 - Fasque, Kincardineshire, Scotland Parents: Thomas Gladstone, Helen Gladstone (born Neilson) Siblings: Margaret Gladstone, Eupheme Gladstone, Janet Ogilvy (born Gladstone), Helen Gladstone, Marion Gladstone, Anne Gladstone, Mary Gladstone Wife: Anne Mackenzie Gladstone (born Robertson) Son: Dec 11 1764 - Leith, Edinburgh, Sc Death: Dec 7 1851 - Fasque, Kincardine, Sc Parents: Thomas Gladstone, Helen Gladstone Siblings: ...lter Gladstone, Janet Ogilvy (born Gladstone), Murray Gladstone, Thomas Steuart Gladstone, Robert Gladstone, James Gladstone, Helen (Twin...

Wife: Anne Mckenzie Gladstone (born Robertson) Partner: <Private> Gladstone (born Hall) Children: ...nne Mackenzie Gladstone, Thomas Gladstone, Robertson Gladstone, John (Capt) Neilson Gladstone, William Ewart Gladstone, Helen Jane Gladstone Dec 11 1764 - Leith, Midlothian, Scotland Death: Dec 5 1851 - Fasque, Kincardineshire, Scotland Parents: Thomas Gladstone, Helen Gladstone (born Neilson) Siblings: ...alter Gladstone, Murray Gladstone, Janet Gladstone, Thomas Gladstone, Robert Gladstone, James Gladstone, Helen Gladstone, Hugh Gladstone,... Wife: Anne Mackenzie Gladstone (born Robertson) Children: Dec 11 1764 - Leith, midlothian, scotland Death: Thomas Gladstones., Bridget Gladstones.

(born Neilson) Wife: Anne Makenzie Gladstone (born Robertson) Wife: 1st Wife Gladstone Children: Dec 11 1764 - Toftcombes, Biggar, Lanarkshire, Scotland Death: Dec 5 1851 - Fasque, Kincardineshire, Scotland Parents: Thomas Gladstones, Helen Neilson Siblings: ... Gladstone, Walter Gladstone, Murray Gladstone, Janet Ogilvie (born Gladstone), Thomas Gladstone, Robert Gladstones, James Gladstone, Jea...

Wife: Anne Mackenzie Gladstone (born Robertson) Children: Thomas Gladstones, Helen Gladstones (born Neilson) Wife: Anne Mackenzie Gladstones (born Robertson) Children: Anne Mackenzie Gladstone (born Robertson) Son: About Sir John Gladstone of Fasque, 1st Baronet - + = + - - + = + - - + = + - - + = + - [The following was downloaded 2010 from Wikipedia, at ] Sir John Gladstone, 1st Baronet (11 December 1764 – 7 December 1851) was a Scottish merchant Member of Parliament, and the father of the British Prime Minister William Ewart Gladstone. Contents * 8 External links Early life Born in Leith, in Midlothian, Scotland, John Gladstones was the eldest son of Thomas Gladstones (1732-1809) and Helen Neilson (1739-1806). John was the second of the family's sixteen children. Thomas Gladstones was born in Biggar, Lanarkshire, the son of a miller and farmer.

Thomas moved to Leith in 1746, aged 14, to be apprenticed to a wine merchant. Thomas later became a successful corn merchant in Leith and 1762 he married Helen Neilson. Thomas Gladstones was a Whig and an elder in the Church of Scotland. He is buried in North Leith churchyard on Coburg Street. John Gladstone followed his father into the mercantile business, working first for his father's business, before basing himself in Liverpool in 1787, where he entered the house of grain merchants Corrie & Company as a clerk. He was eventually taken into the firm as a partner, the name of the house becoming Corrie, Gladstone & Bradshaw. The business of the firm, and the wealth of its members, soon grew very large. Once he had settled in Liverpool, Gladstones dropped the "s" from his surname, although this was not legally regularized until 1835. Marriage and family In 1792, he married his first wife Jane Hall, the daughter of a Liverpool merchant. However, she died in 1798.

In 1800, he married his second wife Anne MacKenzie Robertson, the daughter of Andrew Robertson, a solicitor and the Provost of Dingwall in Ross-shire. They had six children together: 1. Anne MacKenzie Gladstone (1802-1829) 2. Sir Thomas Gladstone, 2nd Baronet (1804-1889) 3. Robertson Gladstone (1805-1875)[1] 4. John Neilson Gladstone (1807-1863) 5. William Ewart Gladstone (1809-1898) 6. Helen Jane Gladstone (1814-1880) Business John Gladstone made a fortune trading in corn with the United States and cotton with Brazil. He acquired large sugar plantations in Jamaica and Demerara, and was Chairman of the West India Association. He used slaves on these estates and when the slave trade was abolished in the British Empire in 1833, he was active in obtaining compensation for slave owners.

After the abolition of slavery, John Gladstone used Indentured servants from India to work in slavery-like conditions in his sugar plantations. Knowing that a number of Indians had been sent to Mauritius as indentured labour[2], he hit upon the idea of using them in his plantations in the West Indies as well. In a letter dated January 4, 1836 to Messrs. Gillanders, Arbuthnot & Co of Calcutta, Gladstone expressed his desire to obtain labour from India.[3] He used false promises of light work, comfortable housing and schools to make work on Gladstone plantations appear attractive to prospective Indian migrants. Indians, on their arrival in British Guiana, became known as Hill Coolies.[4]. From 1838 to 1917, over 200,000 Indians arrived under indentureship in British Guiana alone. They lived under slave like conditions in the plantations.[5] After sixteen years of operations, Corrie, Gladstone & Bradshaw was dissolved and its business was continued by John Gladstone under the name of John Gladstone & Company.

His six brothers followed him from Leith to Liverpool, and he took his brother Robert into partnership with him. Their business became very extensive, having a large trade with Russia, and as sugar importers and West India merchants. In 1814, when the monopoly of the British East India Company was broken and trade with India and China was opened to competition, Gladstone's firm was the first to send a private ship to Calcutta. Politics Gladstone was also interested in politics. He was in favour of a qualified reform of the franchise and of Greek independence during the 1820s. At first he was a Whig, but he came to support the Tory George Canning, and became a Tory. In 1812 he presided over a meeting at Liverpool which was called to invite Canning to represent Liverpool in the House of Commons. Gladstone wanted to represent Liverpool himself, but this never happened. Instead, he was Member of Parliament for Lancaster (1818-1820), Woodstock (1820-1826), and Berwick-upon-Tweed (1826-1827). This rejection by Liverpool soured his relationship with the city.

William Gladstone began his political career as a right-wing Tory like his father, before becoming a Liberal Prime Minister. Later years Returning to his native Scotland after 42 years, in 1829 John Gladstone bought the Fasque Estate in Kincardineshire from Sir Alexander Ramsay for £80,000. In 1846 he was created a Baronet by the outgoing Prime Minister, Sir Robert Peel. In 1838 he paid for several philanthropic works in his home town of Leith, all built on Mill Lane, the old western route out of the town, namely: St Thomas' Church (now a Sikh temple; an adjacent manse; a free school for boys; a separate free school for girls; and a "house for female incurables" (what at the time would normally be called a lunatic asylum; and at the end a public rose garden. The original free school on Mill Lane (1820) linked to the Poorhouse opposite, and was made redundant due to Gladstone's new schools. Ironically the latter, c.1995 was converted to a public house, entitled "Gladstones" though having only this very tangential link.

Sir John Gladstone died at Fasque House in December 1851, aged 86, and was buried at St Andrew's Episcopal Church at Fasque. He was succeeded by his eldest son, Sir Thomas Gladstone, 2nd Baronet. A plaque has been erected on the corner of Great Junction Street and King Street in Leith commemorating John Gladstone. [edit] References 1. ^ "History". Friends of Court Hey Park. . Retrieved 2008-08-07. 2. ^ History of the South Asian Diaspora 3. ^ "Letter". 4 January 1836. ~librcsd/etext/scoble/JANU1836.HTM . Retrieved 2008-09-07. 4. ^ "Hill Coolies". ~librcsd/etext/scoble/ . Retrieved 2008-09-07. 5. ^ "East Indian Indentureship in the Caribbean". Cariwave. . Retrieved 2008-09-07.

See also * Hansard 1803–2005: contributions in Parliament by Sir John Gladstone * Guiana 1838 Movie - + = + - - + = + - - + = + - - + = + - Merchant. Sent by his father to Liverpool to sell a cargo of grain there, the energy and aptitude of the young man attracted the favourable notice of a leading corn-merchant of Liverpool, who recommended him to settle in that city. Beginning his commercial career as a clerk in his patron's house, John Gladstone lived to become one of the merchant-princes of Liverpool, a baronet and a member of parliament. He died in 1851 at the age of eightyseven. Sir John Gladstone was a pure Scotsman, a Lowlander by birth and descent. He owned mines in Wales, factories in Lancashire. Of Liverpool. Shareholder in The Liverpool and Manchester Railway which was the first commercial railway in the world. Attempts to build a rail link to move cotton, cloth and other goods began in the early 1820s. Of Fasque House (Aberdeenshire). Living in Seaforth House ca 1830.

John Gladstone owned estates in Jamaica and 1834 was the year of prohibition of slavery there. His son Robertson Gladstone was in Jamaica between March and October. He amassed great wealth from West Indian sugar plantations. Other References William Ewart Gladstone | British Statesman William Ewart Gladstone British Prime Minister and Political Reformer William Ewart Gladstone. Kean Collection/Getty Images By Robert McNamara Updated December 31, 2015. William Ewart Gladstone was a dominant and controversial figure in Victorian England and the leading British statesman of the 19th century. He served in the British government from the 1830s to the 1890s, and as Prime Minister of Britain on four occasions he reformed both British government and society. Gladstone is often viewed as the moral and political voice of the Victorian era, yet he was famously disliked by Queen Victoria . One of Gladstone's lifelong obsessions was the "rescuing" of English prostitutes, and his activities in that regard made some question his motivations and even his sanity. Early Life of Gladstone William Ewart Gladstone was born on December 29, 1809 in Liverpool.

His family was of Scottish descent, and his father, Sir John Gladstone, became a wealthy merchant in the port city of Liverpool and had investments in slave plantations in the West Indies. After being educated at Eton and Christ Church, Oxford, Gladstone took a trip to Italy and then returned to Britain and was elected to Parliament. continue reading below our video 10 Best Universities in the United States Though he would become the leader of the Liberal Party, he was first elected as a Tory. His first address in Parliament was a defense of slave owners in the West Indies, in which he used his father as an example. Gladstone's Politics Shifted from Conservative to Liberal In the British government Gladstone was at first aligned with Sir Robert Peel, but throughout the 1840s Gladstone’s politics evolved until he began taking positions more in line with the Liberal party. A trip to Naples in the early 1850s, where he witnessed extreme poverty, may have helped drive him away from Tory orthodoxy. In the 1850s Gladstone served as chancellor of the exchequer, the chief financial officer of the British government, and was influential in passing financial reforms, including the abolition of many taxes and tariffs.

Leader of the Liberal Party In the late 1850s Gladstone gravitated toward a newly formulated Liberal party and became its leader. Gladstone's party won an overwhelming majority in the elections of 1868, and he became prime minister. He focused on reforms, which were often targeted at reducing the influence of privilege and making British institutions, such as civil service and the military, open to those beyond the privileged classes. Gladstone and the Issue of Irish Home Rule: Gladstone served four terms as prime minister: 1868-1874 1886 1892-94 During his first term as prime minister Gladstone pushed reforms intended to improve the lot of the Irish peasantry. In fact, Gladstone became intensely interested in the "Irish question," and many of his ideas for reform were focused on Britain's administration of Ireland . Gladstone, throughout the late 1800s, often advocated "home rule" for Ireland. While it wasn't a call for outright Irish independence, it was considered by many a radical position.

Bitter Rivalry With Benjamin Disraeli The other leading political player in Victorian Britain was Benjamin Disraeli, who, like Gladstone, held a variety of government posts and served as Prime Minister. For decades Gladstone and Disraeli were rivals, and it is known that they detested each other. The two men came from very opposite backgrounds, and while they were both highly intelligent, they often battled on opposite sides of an issue. And they also had different relationships with Queen Victoria, who liked Disraeli and complained bitterly of Gladstone's attitude toward her. Gladstone's Attacks on Disraeli Were Effective Gladstone was opposed to Britain's imperial foreign policy. And in the late 1870s, while out of power, he published a controversial pamphlet attacking the foreign policy of Benjamin Disraeli , who was the current prime minister. The title of the pamphlet, "Bulgarian Horrors and the Questions of the East" seems utterly obscure today, but Britain's policy in the near-east was a huge topic of debate at the time. Disraeli's policy supported Turkey, and Gladstone, horrified by Turkish atrocities in the Balkans, denounced it.

Gladstone's appeal to the voters brought him back as prime minister in 1880. Gladstone's Personality was Controversial Gladstone was renowned for his intellect and his oratory, but he often clashed with Queen Victoria, and his hatred of Disraeli was legendary. When Disraeli died, Gladstone refused to attend his funeral. While disliked by some in power, Gladstone remained popular with the public over a span of decades. Gladstone had married Catherine Glynne in 1839. His marriage was happy and he and Catherine had eight children. Gladstone found himself in failing health and resigned his final term as prime minister at the age of 85. He died in 1898, at the age of 89. Gladstone's Obsessions Gladstone was obsessed with physical fitness, and one of his hobbies was felling large trees with an ax. He was also dedicated to the rescue and rehabilitation of London prostitutes. For many years, even while serving as prime minister, he would walk the streets at night, approach prostitutes, and offer to give them shelter and a way to a respectable life. This activity may may have stemmed from a deep religious conviction.

Yet it raised eyebrows in British society, and has engendered speculation to the present day. University of Glasgow :: Story :: Biography of William Ewart Gladstone Biography of William Ewart Gladstone William Ewart Gladstone William Ewart Gladstone (1809-1898) was Rector of the University from 1877 until 1880. Born in Liverpool, Gladstone was a graduate of Christ's Church Oxford. Initially intending to become a lawyer, he was elected an MP in 1832 and chose a career in politics instead. Originally a Tory, he became a member of the Liberal Party in 1859. He held many of the highest government offices, including those of Chancellor of the Exchequer and President of the Board of Trade. Gladstone became one of the most famous Prime Ministers in British history, serving from 1868 until 1874; 1880 to 1885; in 1886, and from 1892 to 1894. Gladstone lost the 1865 rectorial election to Lord Glencorse.

In 1877 he defeated Sir Stafford Northcote, the Chancellor of the Exchequer in the Conservative governemnt of the day. More than 2,000 people attended his installation at the Kibble Palace in 1878, when Gladstone delivered an address lasting more than an hour and a half. That day he also addressed audiences at a special lunch arranged by the Senate; at St Andrew's Hall, and at the City Hall. After his death in 1898, a bronze statue of Gladstone wearing his Rector's robes was erected in George Square by public subscription.

Summary William Ewart Gladstone (1809-1898) William Ewart Gladstone (1809-1898) [ Victorian Web Home —> Political History —> Prime Ministers ] William Ewart Gladstone served as Prime Minister four times — from 3 December 1868 to 17 February 1874; from 23 April 1880 to 9 June 1885; from 1 February to 20 July 1886; and from 15 August 1892 to 2 March 1894. Gladstone, who was born on 29 December 1809 at Rodney Street, Liverpool, was the fourth son and fifth child of a family of six born to Sir John Gladstone and his wife Anne Mackenzie Robertson. Sir John Gladstone made his fortune in trade especially with America and the West Indies: it was there that he owned sugar plantations. William Gladstone was educated at a preparatory school at Seaforth Vicarage near Liverpool before attending Eton between 1821 and 1827.

From there he went to Christ Church, Oxford, between 1828 and 1831. In 1831 he spoke at the Oxford Union against the Reform Act, saying that any electoral reform would lead to revolution. His Degree was in Classics but he also studied Mathematics and in 1831 was awarded a Double First in the subjects. In the 1832 election following the passing of the Reform Act he was elected as the Tory MP for Newark-on-Trent, on the influence of the Duke of Newcastle; he took the seat of Michael Sadler, the factory reformer . He then went on a Grand Tour of Europe, visiting Belgium, France and various centres in Italy. On his return in 1833 he entered Lincoln's Inn, but by 1839 he had requested that his name should be removed from the list because he no longer intended to be called to the Bar. Gladstone's maiden speech was made on 3 June 1833 during the Committee stage of the Bill for the Abolition of Slavery in the British empire. His father was a West Indian slave-owner and Gladstone defended him against allegations of maltreating his slaves.

The following year Gladstone was appointed as a junior Lord of the Treasure by Sir Robert Peel who had just formed his first ministry. Two weeks later Disraeli and Gladstone met for the first time: Gladstone was appalled by Disraeli's "foppish" attire. Later in life the two would become great parliamentary rivals; there was no friendship between them throughout their long political lives. On 27 January Gladstone was made Under-Secretary of State for the Colonies but his appointment lasted only until April when Peel resigned. In June 1839 Gladstone became engaged to Catherine Glynne, the daughter of Sir Stephen Glynne of Hawarden Castle. The Glynnes were an old Whig family and Catherine was related through the maternal line to the Grenville family. The couple were married the following month and had a family of four boys and four girls. In January 1840 Gladstone began his work of rescuing and rehabilitating London prostitutes, and in 1848 he founded the Church Penitentiary Association for the Reclamation of Fallen Women.

Following the defeat of Lord Melbourne 's government in 1841, Sir Robert Peel formed his second ministry and Gladstone was appointed to the post of Vice-President of the Board of Trade; he accepted reluctantly on the grounds that his lack of knowledge of trade made him unfit for the appointment. It was in his official capacity that he first dined with Queen Victoria at Buckingham palace and was appalled to find that there was no chaplain present and that grace was not said prior to the meal. In May 1843 Gladstone was made President of the Board of Trade and a Cabinet member; he was responsible for the passing of the ' parliamentary train Act ' in 1844 that provided for one train each way, each day, carrying third class passengers at no more than 1d. per mile at not less than 12 miles per hour. In 1838 Gladstone had published his book The Church and its Relations to the Church, in which he said that the State possessed a conscience and had a duty to distinguish between truth and error in religion. Doctrinal differences were, therefore, matters of great importance.

The Established Church was the conscience of the English state, and that State was bound to give an active , informed, consistent, and exclusive financial and general support to the Anglican religion which was of the purest and most direct Apostolic descent. [Magnus, p. 35.] He had also attacked the annual grant of £9,000 that was given to the Maynooth Seminary in Ireland, saying that giving money for the training of Roman Catholic priests was inappropriate for a Protestant nation and would lead to mortal danger. However, in 1844 Peel was attempting to pursue a policy of conciliation in Ireland . A perpetual grievance of the Catholic Church in Ireland was the disparity in finances between the wealth of the Anglican establishment that ministered to about a twelfth of the people and the poverty of the Catholic Church, that ministered to the vast majority of the population. Peel had no intention of changing the privileges of the Anglican Church but did enter into indirect communication with the Vatican about how to conciliate Catholic opinion. In February 1845 Peel proposed to increase — and make permanent — the Maynooth grant from £9,000 to £30,000 p.a.

Although in the interim, Gladstone had changed his mind about the value of the grant, he had not repudiated his book: he wanted to vote for the increase but felt that he could not do so as a Minister in the government. He tendered his resignation rather than compromise his integrity. Peel's reaction was, 'I really have great difficulty sometimes in comprehending what Gladstone means'. In 1846 Gladstone's sister Helen had been restrained by the Lunacy Commission; she had a long history of instability and opium addiction; she also had had a series of lovers but the final straw for Gladstone was her conversion to Roman Catholicism. He could tolerate her other failings but not her apostasy. However, Gladstone was happy to join with Disraeli in 1847 in voting for Lord John Russell's motion to allow Jews to take the oath on becoming a member of the House of Commons. Gladstone's high moral stance was a source of irritation to his colleagues. As Henry Labouchere said: while he had no objection to Gladstone's habit of concealing the ace of trumps up his sleeve, he did object to his reiterated claim that it had been put there by Almighty God.

In 1848 the third Chartist petition was presented; Gladstone served as a Special Constable, as did Louis Napoleon Bonaparte, soon to be the Emperor Napoleon III of France. Gladstone did not return to office until 1852 when the Earl of Aberdeen formed his ministry; Gladstone was appointed as Chancellor of the Exchequer and based his first Budget on public expenditure economies. One of his first acts was to order the Foreign Office to stop using large thick sheets of double notepaper when single, thinner sheets would do. Gladstone also 'invented' the postcard on grounds of economy. He also decided to maintain income tax as an equitable means of collecting revenue for the government. Soon it became necessary to increase the levels of tax because Aberdeen allowed Britain to drift into the Crimean War in 1854; Gladstone increased taxation from 7d in the £1 to 10½d in the £1. Aberdeen's handling of the war led to the ministry's downfall and in 1855 Palmerston formed his first ministry without Gladstone who resigned in protest at Palmerston's acceptance of a Committee of Inquiry into the conduct of the war.

He did accept the post of Lord High Commissioner Extraordinarily to the Ionian Islands- a British protectorate-between November 1855 and June 1859 when he returned to take up the office of Chancellor of the Exchequer in Palmerston's second ministry; along with Palmerston, Gladstone was one of the founding members of the Liberal Party in 1859. However, their working relationship was not easy and Gladstone said later that he never attended a Cabinet meeting during this time, without ensuring that he carried a letter of resignation in his pocket. Gladstone's second Budget followed the Cobden Treaty with France, a reciprocity agreement that called for another increase in income tax to cover the shortfall of revenue for the government. The treaty did bring about a decrease in the standard of living, however, since foodstuffs became cheaper. His introduction of the Post Office Savings Bank enables small savings to be made by ordinary people and gave an extra source of revenue for government purposes. As a result of this, he was able to reduce income tax in 1861; he also brought about the single Money Bill form of the Budget; this meant that henceforward, Budgets had to be accepted or rejected in their entirety.

The Hon. Emily Eden commented to Lord Clarendon in 1860 that if Gladstone 'were soaked in boiling water and rinsed until he were twisted into rope, I do not suppose a drop of fun would ooze out'. Disraeli's assessment of Gladstone was that he 'had not one single redeeming defect'. During the American Civil War (1861-65) Gladstone provided relief work on the Hawarden estates for workers in the Lancashire cotton industry who had been put out of work because of the blockade of the Confederate ports by the North, preventing the export of raw cotton. Nevertheless, in 1863 he attempted to tax the incomes of charities on the grounds that all money was a trust from God and should be taxed like everything else. His proposal was defeated in the Commons. He supported the second Reform Bill that was intended to lower the franchise qualification in towns, saying, 'I venture to say that every man who is not presumably incapacitated by some consideration of personal unfitness or of political danger is morally entitled to come within the pale of the Constitution'. This was seen by the radicals as a move towards universal suffrage, which horrified the Queen and also resulted in him losing his seat at Oxford.

Following the death of Palmerston, Gladstone served in Lord John Russell 's ministry as Leader of the House of Commons and Chancellor of the Exchequer. He was responsible for the first attempt to extend the franchise, in 1866; he also continued to reduce duties on imported goods. In December 1868 Gladstone was appointed as PM for the first time following the Liberal victory in the General Election that followed the passing of the second Reform Act and Gladstone announced that his 'mission was to pacify Ireland'. The ministry ( 1868-74 ) passed a whole spate of reforms but lost the 1874 general election at which Disraeli 's Tory party won a majority. In 1876 Gladstone published The Bulgarian Horrors and the Question of the East, attacking the government's policy towards the Ottoman Empire. During this period, Gladstone constantly attacked the PM and ultimately launched his Midlothian Campaign prior to the next general election on 1880.

He was able to discredit Disraeli and the Liberals won the election; Gladstone had offended Queen Victoria in 1866 when he refused to support the purchase of gun metal for a memorial to Prince Albert that was to be erected in Kensington Gardens, and relations between the two were always difficult. Gladstone formed his second ministry even though Queen Victoria attempted to appoint Lord Hartington instead. The queen was widely reported to have commented that, 'He speaks to me as if I were a public meeting'. Just before she appointed Gladstone, Victoria wrote to Sir Henry Ponsonby that she would 'sooner abdicate than send for or have anything to do with that half-mad fire-brand who would soon ruin everything and be a dictator'. The second ministry was taken up mainly with Irish affairs. Gladstone was obliged to increase income tax from 5d to 6d in the £ and he also increased the duty on beer. A Coercion Act for Ireland was passed in an attempt to deal with increasing violence and Gladstone was able to pass the second Irish Land Act that introduced the 'three Fs"-fixity of tenure, fair rents, and free sale of land.

Just after the Bill went through parliament, Disraeli died; not surprisingly, Gladstone did not attend the funeral. Although Gladstone was a committed Anglican, in 1881 he introduced a Bill that would enable non-believers to affirm their allegiance to the Crown. Jews and Quakers were already able to do that, but not atheists. Charles Bradlaugh had been expelled from the House of Commons on four occasions because of his atheism. Eventually Bradlaugh moved his own Affirmation Bill in 1888 but in the attempt to secure fair treatment for Bradlaugh, Gladstone brought down a great deal of criticism on his own head. The following year, Lord Frederick Cavendish and Thomas Burke were murdered in Phoenix Park, Dublin. Cavendish — Gladstone's nephew-by-marriage-was the Chief Secretary for Ireland; Burke was his Undersecretary Gladstone introduced an even more severe Coercion Act as a result of the murders. Gladstone's foreign policy was less successful than his domestic policies. The British army was involved in actions in the Sudan and Afghanistan.

General Gordon disobeyed orders to evacuate Khartoum in 1884 and Gladstone was blamed for his death when the town fell to the Mahdi and his troops. In the same year, Gladstone's ministry passed the third Reform Act and also the Redistribution Act that provided for alterations being made to constituency boundaries. However, the Conservatives and Irish Nationalists worked together to remove Gladstone's ministry; he resigned on 9 June 1885 and was replaced by the Marquess of Salisbury . On 17 December 1885, Gladstone's son Herbert revealed to the press that his father was dedicated to achieving Home Rule for Ireland: the incident has become known as the 'Hawarden Kite'. Herbert Gladstone's announcement did nothing to endear his father to the Liberals or the Irish and gave the Conservatives another stick with which to beat the elderly statesman. The Irish saw an opportunity to wring concessions from the British government and joined the Liberals to defeat the Conservatives : this political seesaw continued for many years.

In January 1886 Gladstone formed his third ministry at the age of 76; by that time the Liberal Party was divided over his Irish policies and he failed to have the legislation passed. Gladstone called an election but found himself attacked from all directions; the Conservatives won and he resigned. In 1890 the Liberal-Irish alliance ended with the Parnell scandal and in 1891 Gladstone announced the 'Newcastle Programme' that included a battery of reforms as well as Home Rule for Ireland. The Liberals won a majority at the 1892 election and Gladstone formed his fourth and last ministry. Soon afterwards he introduced another Home Rule Bill that failed in the House of Lords; almost concurrently he refused to accept the increased Naval estimates and resigned on 2 March 1894. His last speech was delivered in Liverpool; it was a protest against the Armenian massacres in Turkey. On 19 May 1898 Gladstone died at Hawarden and he was later buried in Westminster Abbey. He was 88 years old. Recommended reading Feuchtwanger, E.J. Gladstone. London, 1989. Magnus, P.

Gladstone: A Biography. London, John Murray, 1954 Matthew, H.C.G. Gladstone 1809-1898. Oxford, Clarendon Press, 1996. BBC - History - Historic Figures: William Ewart Gladstone (1809 - 1898) z William Ewart Gladstone © Four-times Liberal prime minister of Great Britain, Gladstone was one of the dominant political figures of the Victorian era and a passionate campaigner on a huge variety of issues, including home rule for Ireland. William Ewart Gladstone was born on 29 December 1809 in Liverpool, the son of a prosperous merchant. He was educated at Eton and Oxford University and was elected to parliament in 1832, as a Tory. He made his mark from the start and held junior offices in Robert Peel's government of 1834 - 1835. Although he was slowly moving towards liberalism, in 1843 Gladstone entered Peel's Conservative cabinet. When the Conservatives split in 1846, Gladstone followed Peel in becoming a Liberal-Conservative.

Between 1846 and 1859 Gladstone was politically isolated, although he held some cabinet posts, including chancellor of the exchequer, a position he would ultimately hold three times. In 1859, he joined the Liberals, becoming their leader in 1867 and the following year, prime minister for the first time. His government created a national elementary programme and made major reforms in the justice system and the civil service. Ireland was always a focus for Gladstone. In 1869 he disestablished the Irish Protestant church and passed an Irish Land Act to rein-in unfair landlords. A heavy defeat in the 1874 general election led to Gladstone's arch-rival Benjamin Disraeli becoming Conservative prime minister, and Gladstone retired as Liberal leader. He remained a formidable government opponent, attacking the Conservatives over their failure to respond to Turkish brutality in the Balkans - the 'Eastern Crisis'. In 1880, Gladstone became prime minister for the second time, combining this with the office of chancellor for two years.

His failure to rescue General Charles Gordon from Khartoum and slow reaction to other imperial issues cost him dear, and in 1885 the government's budget was defeated, prompting him to resign. Gladstone's third (1886) and fourth (1892 - 1894) terms as prime minister were dominated by his crusade for home rule in Ireland. The years he was out of office were devoted to the issue as well. His first home rule bill in 1886 split the Liberal Party and was rejected. In 1893, another home rule bill was rejected by the House of Lords. Gladstone found himself increasingly at odds with his cabinet and, in 1894, he resigned. He died of cancer on 19 May 1898 and was buried in Westminster Abbey. BBC - City marks Gladstone bicentenary City marks Gladstone bicentenary William Ewart Gladstone was born in Liverpool in 1809 Liverpool is celebrating the bicentenary of the birth of William Gladstone with a special exhibition.

The four times British Prime Minister was born at 92 Rodney Street, on 29 December, 1809. St George's Hall is hosting a free three month exhibition of records, diaries and books from Gladstone's career. An MP for 50 over years the 19th century statesman reformed voting rights, introduced free education. Situated in the Gladstone Gallery the exhibition includes pottery and ceramics, newspaper cuttings from the 19th century and a bust of Gladstone donated by John Moores University. The son of a Scottish merchant Gladstone was also Chancellor of the Exchequer, where he paved the way for cheaper newspapers by cutting publishing duties. Liverpool City Council Community Historian Steve Binns has studied Gladstone's life for 30 years, "Gladstone is my hero because of his journey from opposing any change to championing the right of the people to be at the heart of the government," Steve Binns explains.

"He arguably invented modern politics from public speaking and public campaigns to the secret ballot - all of which was centred on the revolutionary idea of persuading people to vote and to trust them to do so." "His attitude to life is fascinating and in my opinion he is probably Liverpool's greatest son. "He famously said he always backed the masses against the classes and made so many comebacks that the remark 'you could take Gladstone out of Liverpool but not Liverpool out of Gladstone' always proved accurate." Gladstone's last noteworthy speech was in Liverpool at Henglers Circus, which was near West Derby Road, where he spoke to 7000 people denouncing Armenian massacres by Ottomans. The exhibition at St George's Hall is open until 27 March, 2010. Bookmark with: BBC News - City to honour Gladstone's birth City to honour Gladstone's birth William Gladstone served as prime minister for four times Ideas are being sought on how to best celebrate the 200th anniversary of the birth of a Merseyside man who was elected prime minister four times. William Ewart Gladstone was born at 62 Rodney Street on 29 December 1809.

He was the son of a prosperous merchant and dominant political figure in the Victorian era. A Liverpool City Council spokesman said it was important to recognise the contribution the "Grand Old Man of British politics" made to the city. Councillor Eddie Clein, chairman of the regeneration and culture select committee, said: "Gladstone was one of the most important figures in British history during the last couple of centuries and we should be proud that he was a Liverpool man. "This anniversary gives us a chance to commemorate him and his achievements. "One idea was that we hold an event at the newly-restored Gladstone conservatory in Stanley Park - even though it is actually named after Isla Gladstone - and it may be appropriate to do something there. "But I am sure Liverpool people will have more ideas on how we can recognise the contribution the Grand Old Man of British politics made to the city and to the country and we want to hear from them." Bookmark with:

Question: In which city was William Ewart Gladstone born?
Answer: LIVERPOOL